>> the u.s. on the verge of a new war. president obama tries to build a coalition to fight this self declared islamic state. sweeping through syria and iraq, mass killings, beheadings. religious persecution. tonight our special report: the rise of i.s. a presidential address. >> and a live look at the white house tonight where the president is scheduled to address the nation at the top of the hour. he will talk about the growing threat from the self declared islamic state and is expected to say the u.s. is prepared to use air strikes against the group wherever the fighters exist. mike viqueria is at the white house. mike what will we hear tonight? >> john you will hear the president talk about the expansion of the military campaign over iraq. that campaign is also going to be expanded. the president is expected to announce expansion into syria for the first time to attack

i.s.i.s. strong holds within that country. he is going to say it's going to take a long time, months to years of time, and coalition of nations from that region. john. >> what do you think david schuster is the most important issue that the president has to deal with it? >> i think it's domestic politics, to the end you have a shot of the state floor. this is the first time this president or any president in 50 years has given a speech from this location. equidistance between the oval office and the stateroom, not appearing isolated but with the feel of the oval office. >> all right the president of the united states is preparing to make an address to the american people about the islamic state. as we've heard a very significant address from the president tonight and here is the president as he walks to the microphone. let's take a listen.

>> my fellow americans. tonight i want to speak to you about what the united states will do with our friends and allies to degrade and ultimately destroy the terrorist group known as i.s.i.l. as commander in chief my highest priority is the security of the american people. over the last several years we have consistently taken the fight to terrorists who threaten our country. we took out osama bin laden and much of al qaeda's leadership in afghanistan and pakistan. we have targeted al qaeda's affiliate in yemen and recently eliminated its top commander in somalia. we have done so while bringing 140,000 troops home from iraq and drawing down our forces in afghanistan where our combat mission will end later this year. thanks to our military and counterterrorism professionals america is safer. still we continue to face a terrorist threat.

we can't erase every trace of evil from the world. and small groups of killers have the capacity to do great harm. that was a case before 9/11 and that remains true today. and that's why we must remain vigilant as threats emerge. at this moment the greatest threats come from the middle east and north africa where radical groups exploit grievances for their own gain and one of those groups is i.s.i.l. which calls itself the islamic state. let's make two things clear. i.s.i.l. is not islamic. no religion condones the killing of innocents and the majority of i.s.i.l.'s victims have been muslim. it was formerly the iraq civil war to gain territory on both sides of the iraq syrian border. it is recognized by no government, nor by the people it

subjugates. i.s.i.l. is a terrorist organization, pure and simple and has no vision other than the slaughter of all who stand in its way. in a region that has known so much bloodshed these terrorists are unique in their brutality. they execute captured prisoners. they kill children. they enslave, rape, and force women into marriage. they threaten the religious minority with genocide and in acts of barbarism they took the lives of two american journalists, jim foley and steven sotloff. so i.s.i.l. poses a threat to the people of iraq and syria and the broader middle east, including american citizens personnel and facilities. if left unchecked these terrorists could pose a growing threat beyond that region including to the united states. what we have not yet detected specific plotting against our

home land, i.s.i.l. leaders have threatened america and our allies. our intelligence community believes that thousands of foreigners, including europeans and some americans, have joined them in syria and iraq. trained and battle-hardened these fighters could try to return to their home countries and carry out deadly attacks. i know many americans are concerned about these threats. tonight, i want you to know that the united states of america is meeting them with strength and resolve. last month i ordered our military to take targeted action against i.s.i.l. to stop its advances. since then we conducted more than 150 successful air strikes in iraq. these strikes have protectamerican personnel and facilities. killed i.s.i.l. fighters destroyed weapons and given space for iraqi and kurdish forces to reclaim key territory. these strikes have also helped save the lives of thousands of

innocent men, women and children. but this is not our fight alone. american power can make a decisive difference but we cannot do for iraqis what they must do for themselves nor can we take the place of arab partners in securing their region. that's why i've insisted that additional u.s. action depended upon iraqis forming an inclusive government which they have now done in recent days. so tonight, with a new iraqi government in place, and following consultations with allies abroad and congress at home, i can announce that america will lead a broad coalition to roll back this terrorist threat. our objective is clear. we will degrade and ultimately destroy i.s.i.l. through a comprehensive and sustained counterterrorism strategy. first: we will conduct a systematic campaign of air

strikes against these terrorists. working with the iraqi government, we will expand our efforts beyond protecting our own people and humanitarian missions so that we are hitting i.s.i.l. targets as iraqi forces go on offense. moreover i've made it clear that we will hunt down terrorists who threaten our country wherever they are. that means i will not hesitate to take action against i.s.i.l. in syria as well as iraq. this is a core principle of my presidency. if you threaten america, you will find no save haven. -- safe haven. second we will increase our support to forces fighting these terrorists on the ground. in june i deployed several hundred american service workers to iraq to assess how best we could assist security forces. we will send an additional 475 service members to iraq, as i have said before these american forces will not have a combat

mission. we will not get dragged into another ground war in iraq. but they are needed to support iraqi and kurdish forces with training intelligence and equipment. we'll also support iraq's efforts to stand up national guard units to help sunni communities secure their own freedom from i.s.i.l.'s control. across the border in syria we have ramped up our military assistance to the syrian opposition. tonight i call on congress again to give us additional authorities and resources to train and equip these fighters. in the fight against i.s.i.l. we cannot rely on an assad regime that terrorizes its own people that will never regain a legitimacy it has lost. we must have a counter weight against extremists like i.s.i.l. while positioning syria's crisis

once and for all. third, we will continue to draw on our substantial counterterrorism abilities, working with our partners we will redouble our efforts to cut off its funding improve our intelligence strengthen our defenses counter its warped ideology and stem the flow of foreign fighters into and out of the middle east and in two weeks i will chair a meeting of the u.n. security council to further mobilize the international community around this effort. fourth, we will continue to provide humanitarian assistance to innocent civilians who have been displaced by this terrorist organization. this includes sunni and shia muslims who are at grave risk as well as tens of thousands of christians and other religious minorities. we cannot allow these communities to be driven from their ancient home lands. so this is our strategy: and in each of these four parts of our strategy america will be joined by a broad coalition of

partners. already allies are flying planes with us over iraq. sending arms and assistance to iraqi security forces and the syrian opposition. sharing intelligence, and providing billions of dollars in humanitarian aid. secretary kerry was in iraq today meeting with the new government and supporting their efforts to promote unity and in the coming days he will travel across the middle east and europe to enlist more partners in this fight, especially arab nations who can help mobilize sunni communities in iraq and syria to drive these terrorists from their lands. this is american leadership at its best. we stand with people who fight for their own tree dom and we rally other -- freedom and we rally other nations for common security and common humidity. approach here at home, i have the authority to address the threat from i.s.i.l. but i believe we are strongest as a nation when the president and congress work together.

so i welcome songal support for this -- i welcome congressional support for this effort in showing americans we are unitiey united in -- approaching this danger. any time we take military action there are risks involved, especially to the service men and women 0 carry out these missions. but i wanted the american people to know how these efforts are different. it will not involve american fighting troops fighting on foreign soil. steady relentless effort to take out i.s.i.l. wherever they exist using our air power and our support to partners on the ground. this strategy of taking out terrorists who threaten us while supporting partners on the front lines is one that we have successfully pursued in yemen and somalia for years and it is

consistent with the approach i outlined earlier this year. to use force against anyone who threatens american core interest to address broader challenges to international order. my fellow americans. we live in a time of great change. tomorrow marks 13 years since our country was attacked. next week marks six years since our economy suffered its worst setback since the great depression. yet despite these shocks, through the pain we felt and the grueling work required to bounce back, america is better positioned today to seize the future than any other nation on earth. our technology companies and universities are unmatched. our manufacturing and auto industries are thriving. energy independence is closer than it's been in decades. for all the work that remains our businesses are in the longest uninterrupted stretch of job creation in our history.

despite all the divisions and discord within our democracy, i see the grit and determination and common goodness of the american people every single day. and that makes me more confident than ever about our country's future. abroad, american leadership is the one constant in an uncertain world. it is america that has the capacity and the will to mobilize the world against terrorists. it is america that has rallied the world against russian aggression and in support of the ukrainian people's right to determine their own destiny. it is america our scientists our doctors our know-how that can help contain and cure the outbreak of ebola. it is america that helped remove and destroyed syria's declared chemical weapons so they cannot pose a threat to the syrian people or the world again and it is america that is helping muslim communities around the

world not just in the fight against terrorism but in the fight for opportunity and tolerance. and a more hopeful future. america, our endless blessings bestow an enduring burden. but as americans, we welcome our responsibility to lead. from europe to asia, from the far reaches of africa to war torn capitals of the middle east. we stand for freedom for justice for dignity, these are values that have guided our nation since its founding. tonight, i ask for your support in carrying that leadership forward. i do so as a commander in chief who could not be prouder of our men and women in uniform. pilots who bravely fly against danger in the middle east and service members who support our partners on the ground. when we helped to prevent the massacre of civilians trapped on

a distance mountain here is what one of them said. we owe our american friends our lives. our children will's remember that there was someone who felt our struggle and made a long journey to protect innocent people. that is the difference we make in the world. and our own safety, our own security, depends upon our willingness to do what it takes to defend this nation and uphold the values that we stand for. timeless ideals. that will endure long after those who offer only hate and destruction have been vanquished from the earth. may god bless our troops and may god bless the united states of america. >> the president of the united states address to the nation tonight. announcing a broad coalition to fight the islamic state group. this coalition would continue to

have air strikes over iraq, also, advisors, u.s. advisors would be sent on the ground, additional advisors to train but no combat troops on the ground. at the same time, the president said he is ready to take action against the islamic state group in syria and support syrian opposition groups. he also announced humanitarian aid to the area. i have ray suarez, mike viqueria in washington, david schuster is in new york. let me go to mike viqueria first. your reaction mike. >> john the president of the united states trying to prepare the american public for what he says is going to be a sustained campaign against the terrorists of the islamic state group. systematic comprehensive and sustained were the phrases the president used to describe an expansion of the air strikes now across the border into syria, striking at islamic state strong holds and as you pointed out expanding the u.s. footprint,

450 more advisors, bringing up the number to about 1500. within the islamic state itself, john. >> was it short on details ray? >> he promised to degrade and destroy the islamic state, said it's not islamic and not a state. but does threaten the united states and its allies. he remarkably balanced the need to widen the war into yrts where the united states has david schuster -- syria where the united states has stayed out until now. and promised not to get the united states involved in combat operations on the ground in iraq once again. and interesting balancing act altogether. >> and david did he convince the american people, that's the question. >> that is the question john, it was a very safe and cautious speech but that matches a very safe and cautious and perhaps restrained policy.

it's hard to imagine the americans be excited about we may have air strikes, as oaf pod to the president's more strong language. does that out pace the somber approach i think that's the area where the statements will lie. mike lyons, what did you think? >> i think the president saying america will lead, we wanted to hear that, he is also engaged, we don't have a strategy anymore, he clearly said: we have a strategy. and those four outlines give the joint chiefs and the military commanders enough to get started. >> i have jamie tarabay from al

jazeera.com. how do you think this is going to be received in iraq and the middle east? >> i think the devil's going to be in the detail. it depends on how the saudis are going to take it. they're agreeing to provide a training area for syrian occupation, how iran's influence in iraq is going to change and how iraqis are going to do in response to this. >> mike viqueria a broad coalition but no details on that coalition. >> right. >> is that because they're just not ready yet? do they have names they could give us and they're just not ready to? >> we know that saudi arabia is certainly involved in the coalition, and we can expect jordan to be as well. secretary kerry is making the rounds as we speak. when would these expanded air strikes start? the administration today, top administration officials telling reporters that the training and equipping of the moderate vetted opposition, there's that phrase

again that the administration likes to use to describe the free syrian army which will require a vote if the united states is going to be equipping them with military arms overtly, they are already doing so covertly through the cia, that is not a requirement to start these air strikes, they are not certain, sort of beat their chest sort of phrase, at the time and place of our choosing. i have to tell you after the mixed messages over the course of the last several weeks of the administration, particularly in the wake of the gruesome videotape murder of james foley and followed by steven sotloff, the administration was stumbling all over themselves, they have the secretary of state and the chairman of the joint chiefs, saying i.s.i.s. is going to have to be routed out of syria if they are going to be defeated.

the secretary of the defense says it is the worst that they have seen, implying it was worse than al qaeda prior to september 11th. and john biden saying, we will chase them to the gates of hell. and a strategy, not putting the cart before the horse. i think what the president was doing was resetting the board in the terms of getting everybody on the same page including the american public who has been seeing this back and forth over the last several weeks and is wondering what's going on. >> ray, the president talked about supporting syrian opposition groups and that seems a delicate matter. the united states is a syrian opposition grupt. grupt -- group. who do you decide to help?

>> it wasn't clear who you help and the president overruled many of his own advisors who wanted to get involved sooner begin training and equipping syrian forces and there was a lot of fear in other circled are circles about where these arms might end up and who these fighters might end up being. it wasn't at all clear then, and when i hear this phrase vetted forces i'm not sure it is at all clear now. syria was seen as a tinder box and one the united states might not successfully navigate. keeping it in the air and training people on the ground may be the safest way forward. >> the president talked about a broad coalition. let's listen to that speech. >> america will be joined by a broad coalition of partners. already our partners are sending

intelligence and providing billions of dollars in humanitarian aid. >> you know what strikes me david schuster about this, about this fight against the islamic state, is this is an enormous undertaking for the united states of america. and you know, whether or not the united states people -- the u.s. people get on board, that may be determined weeks or months down the road. right? >> right and john, the tough gritty military work here at least from the air is being provided only by the united states. it is true that there are coalition members that are flying in humanitarian splice but for instance great -- supplies but for instance great britain who flew combat missions in the iraq war, the great that great britain could do is fly humanitarian supplies. so when it comes to attacking islamic state that is all on the shoulders of the united states and perhaps the president was referring to help from saudi arabia, who is going to be

enlisted in training of these groups and that's going to take a while. but at least for a while the primary military mission is carried out solely by the united states. >> how long does it take to get the broad coalition to get involved militarily? >> we have some practice this it, there will be other nato countries involved. the united states will synchronize those maps. the air force is looking they beat them back on these road networks they gain the upper hand very quickly and take care of looking at strikes inside syria, going for command and control areas they recognize. you'll see drones going over syria to collect as much information as possible. >> jamie are you still there? >> yes i am here i am. >> we talked about the reaction overseas and we had sue turton on and said the iraqi people aren't optimistic necessarily but waiting for something to happen. you spent a lot of time there.

can you give us your impression of what the iraqi people want to hear? >> i think it really depends on what is happening on the ground and ultimately this is what the president was talking about when he congratulated the new iraqi prime minister and the push to see signs from him haider al-abadi for an inclusive government. the risk here is that yet again the sunni population in iraq is going to be faced with another awakening. whether they choose to agree this time as they did last time you remember the u.s. military managed to convince many of the sunni population and the insurgents in particular to lay down their arms and join with the americans to actually beat back al qaeda in iraq. but how ultimately they were not given space and time and room to be part of the iraqi security forces. >> that seems to put a lot of pressure on a brand-new government. >> it's technically not that brand influence. the guy who is in charge is from the same party as nouri

al-maliki, the previous prime minister. all those posts have not been decided yet. nouri al-maliki is a deputy prime minister now. we don't know who the minister of defense or the minister of interior is, until we see how the dust settles on the iraqi government we don't know how it's built up internally to fight this threat. >> mike we have to rely on a government that hasn't quite been built yet it sounds like. >> yes, and from the military perspective they're going to take orders from the government that's how we would expect it to go coordinating these additional soldiers from the united states they're going to be embedded with that military to help with any air strikes. we have got to make sure they're both in line. >> what is the big challenge that the u.s. military faces? >> the strong tenet, they have been attritted down for past few years as well. perhaps they could get motors t-

moderates to join. but training them -- >> how you vet them how you track them down. >> and we're going to hand them equipment and a lot of it is going to be complex equipment that does require some training, not just fire and forget. >> a complicated situation for everyone. stand by we've got more coverage coming up. up next our special report, the rise of the islamic state group. our in-depth look at what it is, how it came to power. a $2 billion war chest. how the islamic state group is funding its expansion seizing and then governing large parts of iraq and syria and how to stop it. the steps the allies need to take to counter the islamic state group and its advance. all that coming up next, don't go away. .

>> powj uj veils his plan to -- powj unveil -- president obama s his plan to fight the islamic state. who is the i.s, can the u.s. build a coalition to stop it? our special report, the rise of the islamic state. >> i'm john siegenthaler in new york. moments ago president obama announced an escalation in the battle against the islamic state group. the president says the u.s. will not be restrained by borders and will begin launching more air attacks including more possible strikes inside syria. the u.s. has resisted military intervention in the syrian conflict for more than three years. we get more on the president's address with mike viqueria who is live at the white house. mike what struck you by the president's speech?

>> systematic, and sustained. over the course of last month into syria attacking strong holds held by the islamic state group. john i have to say as the bits and pieces of this speech start to sink in fascinating that he did not mention any of the potential allies in this much ballyhooed coalition. i think that's a perception issue, the united states does not wan to go it alone. they want to have other arab nations, other sunni arab nation to back them. in fact saudi arabia would be taking part in a number of ways principally by training moderate opposition. interestingly, the president did not mention or make illusions in it, in his speech at least as far as i can remember as i watched it.

it does really go to point out the sensitivity of this and yet the importance of having allies within the region. let's listen to a little bit more of what the president had to say on that score. >> america will be joined by a broad coalition of partners. already, allies are flying planes with us over iraq, sharing intelligence and providing billions of dollars in humanitarian aid. >> john, it seems to me that a lot of this hangs on two very tenuous contingencies. number 1, the administration says now that there has been a new government formed in baghdad, the iraqi government, this was the precondition, they could move forward with a more robust military strategy. but that this new government is going to make any more headway in being inclusive and bringing together any of these sects and sectarian divide open warfare that is besetting iraq, the free

syrian army, the proxy that they are going to use against the islamic state group and the bashar al-assad regime which is still in damascus, are they campaignable reliable and trustworthy, will the arms stay there or end up in the hands of the terrorists as they have been doing in the last several weeks john. >> i've been going over the speech on paper as well. and whether the president -- we made a lot about what the president was going to do in syria in these attacks from the air in syria but didn't hear a lot about that from the president did we? >> we didn't. you know there's no question that the point of this speech was to prepare the public for an expansion of this air campaign. and while it is true the campaign that exists now in iraq will also be beefed up to a major degree, the president also announcing he's sending in some

474 more advisors, technical advisors military advisors into iraq to assist the iraqi national forces and the kurdish peshmerga forces that force is now coming up to some 1500 as well as the air campaign now that is over 150 air strikes in the course of the last month john. >> all right mike thank you very much. we heard about the president's plans for international coalition. our nick schifrin joins us from the middle east bureau with more on that, nick. >> yes, john as you and mike were just discussing the president did not name a single country that the u.s. is looking for to help to fight the islamic state, but the top of the list certainly are two countries that are normally enemies of each other. iran and saudi arabia. saudi arabia as mike's been mentioning will now host a training ground for moderate syrian rebels who will fight the islamic state, will also fight

president bashar al-assad who is supported by iran which is now on board with the islamic state, and fighters are fighting inside of iraq alongside the u.s. not necessarily coordinated but certainly on the same side inside iraq. what the u.s. needs to do what president obama said tonight readying more between the lines really is that it needs a kind of coalition of the willing as president bush used before the first iranian war. we just got a fact sheet of all the member nations that are contributed, 37 pages long starting with albania, there is a sense that the u.s. wants to give that everyone is on board but it's really deadly serious because the u.s. cannot defeat the islamic state without help. it cannot defeet islamic militarily. it needs to have a large alliance across the region not only saudi arabia and kuwait,

united arab emirates, they need to be on board, turkey, many of the foreign fighters that we've been talking about so often in the last few weeks have come over the turkish border into syria. the u.s. knows it simply cannot defeat the islamic state without their help. it is very sensitive for many of these countries, jordan, there will not be any public recognition what they're doing but behind the scenes their help and all these countries' help is very important. >> just how broad that coalition will be is hard to detail. many americans had never heard of the islamic state group. jonathan betz has been following their lightning movement across the middle east. jonathan. >> since it's changed its name repeatedly, many the president as you heard, still refer to it

as i.s.i.l, islamic state of iraq and the levant, or i.s.i.s, islamic state of iraq and syria. they are both translations of the group's original arabic name. but recently it dropped the last half of the name, and calls itself islamic state, and calls itself a caliphate. the o ottoman empire was one. the islamic state group is so violent and so feared. not even al qaeda will work with it. some in the west consider it a significant danger. >> what we see in syria and now in iraq in terms of i.s.i.s. is the most serious threat to britain's security that there is today. >> reporter: for months, rebels have been claiming

territory across syria and then iraq. demanding people of other faiths convert to islamic pay a tax or be killed. >> it's grotesque acts of violence show all the warning signs of genocide. >> reporter: it's fighters are -- its fighters are armed with american weapons abandoned by retreating iraqi forces. >> i think their accounts have grown substantially above any other group. >> reporter: the group began as part of al qaeda in iraq as part of the american invasion in 2003. but as fighting broke out next door in syria, strict interpretation of islamist law, where mannequins faces must be

covered. it's leader, abu bakr al-baghdadi is a mysterious figure captured by the u.s. forces in 2005 but later released. he declared himself the leader of all muslims and openly challenges america. he now commands a force of 15,000 strong that uses slick social media campaigns to recruit fighters, including many westerners and dozens of americans. >> my name is, from america. >> many from troubled backgrounds. >> living in the west, i know how you feel. >> reporter: a recent study found a surprising number of european recruits. 6% are new to islam. many are second or third generation immigrants. have no experience in fighting. around no connection to -- and no connection to syria. >> they have a sense of wanting

to begin to something so a lot of the imagery that is used by the radical folks, the radical mullas is attractive to them. >> take a look at this. in just over a year the islamic state group has made huge gains. it runs this area like a government with courts and schools. it now controls a third of syria and much of iraq. this is an area roughly the size of minnesota and john, it is fight being for even -- fighting for even more land. >> and jonathan betz thank you. we heard the president say he is going to send 475 more military personnel to train iraqis and syrians to fight islamic state group. when those forces get there it will be a total of 1600 american military personnel in the area trying to train syrians and iraqis. that's so far. and we hear from this statement from defense secretary chuck hagel night on the president's

speech. ed the men and women of the u.s. armed services are ready to carry out orders to work across government and to work with our friends and allies around the world to accomplish this mission. who will be part of the coalition still we do not know yet. part of stopping the islamic state group is targeting its deep pockets. by some accounts it may be the wealthiest rebel group ever. paul beban is here on this part of the story paul. >> john the difference between the islamic state group and the other groups is that islamic state does not rely heavily on outside funding, it is almost entirely self-financed, that's going to make it very hard to hit this group in the wallet. with a lightning strike series of bombings, beheadings and military victories, the islamic state has quickly morphed from a scrappy startup to a brutally

well financed organization. >> they marry ideology, a sophistication of tactical military prowess. they are tremendously well funded. oh this is beyond anything that we have seen. >> reporter: the group's rapid rise have been fueled in part by seizing oil fields, thousands of barrels brings in an estimated $2 million to $3 million a day. while oil is a key revenue stream, analysts say the real strength flows from its diversified portfolio. >> they have multiple local funding resources, this includes oil refining, shipment, trade, granaries, sale of government equipment, syrian, iraqi and former american equipment, kidnap for ransom, theft of

antiquities and taxation of local people don't forget they have 6 million people under control. >> reporter: in june the group hit the jackpot when he captured the iraqi city of mosul netting hundreds of millions of dollars in cash and valuables and then that's what retreating iraqi troops left behind. top of the line military hardware from america, tanks vehicles small arms and stock piles of ammunition. estimates of the group's total complete worth runs up to $2 billion. social media strategy, broadcast its savage bloody events to the world. >> illicit fundraising inside iraq and the dplaitions they are getting -- donations they are getting they are a force to be reckoned with for a long time.

>> keeping their war and propaganda machines firing on all cylinders. >> the treasury department released a memo yownt lining how it is going to -- outlining how it is going to go af after the group. perhaps tellingly it didn't say much about what it is going to do about that. reading behind the lines john it's not going to be easy. >> paul beban, thank you very much. as paul mentioned, men money and munitions fueled the group's expansion but long term its survival, much more mundane, the intent to govern. patricia sabga reports. >> plundered state-of-the-art u.s. made military hardware but beneath that formidable war low

pressure lies the key to the islamic state's staying power, a simple highly effective top-down bureaucracy. >> there's sort of core set of functions that the islamic state seeks to put in place as soon as it overruns a village or district or even a province, that ends up looking very hierarchical. >> capitalizing on power vacuums in war torn syria and disenfranchised sunni area of iraq, the islamic state draws heavily from experienced workers in the area it captures. i.s. typically elects a local elir, law enforcement and financial administrators to collect and redistribute money generated through extortion looting and oil sales, and looks to restore essential services like electricity. this frawrt not only feables the

islamic state group to govern its considerable swath of territory, it presents a daunting challenge by making the organization stronger than any single individual or group of individuals who could be killed by air strikes or combat raids. air strikes may contain the islamic state group's advance but it still generates an estimated one to $3 million a day. >> if i.s.i.s. is able to continue to raise the amount of money that it is now it will be able to lie low. if air strikes are effective against it and probably come back later, like it has in the last three months. >> reporter: leaving it poised to fight another day. patricia sabga, al jazeera. >> and we should tell you the speaker of the house republican john boehner has just announced that he supports the president's plan. we expect to hear more of that. islamic state group has committed war crimes and crimes

against humanity. this is the example of what its done in the last year. >> a rigid interpretation of islamic law the islamic state group has forced more than 1 million people from their homes in syria and iraq. last month it cornered tens of thousands of members of the yazidi sect on sinjar mountain in northern iraq. the u.s. launched air strikes and dropped food and water for them. there is often a choice convert to its style of islam or die. others have endured public beatings and amputations, there have been reports of mass executions, including syrian troops lined up and shot. christians are desperately trying to flee the region out of fear of persecution. what the i.s. group fighters have also destroyed shrines considered sacred by other

religious groups. one was the tomb of jonah blown up in july. to recruit new fighters, the most disturbing, the videotaped beheadings of two american journalists. the fighting in iraq is having a devastating effect on since across the country. nearly on civilians across the country. temporary shelter in mosques and other buildings and over 2 million syrian refugees living in iraq. food clean water material for shelters. iraqi american's zena sabi, author of between two worlds which documents her experience growing up in iraq under saddam hussein. zena welcome back. give me your reaction of what you heard from the president?

>> well, it's like a quick reaction, a military reaction to the middle east as opposed to a lock term reaction, instead of playing a whack a mole game. the united states did not win world war ii by only mill tried intervention. it stainless steeled -- i.t. stabilized, bill military intervention -- >> shouldn't it be first the military intervention to symptom the islamic state or not? >> we inanniversarieded iraq more than 11 years ago. we're halfway down the game now. we need a long term thing. i.s.i.s. is recruiting young people from across the middle east and europe because they do have a vision, they address the psychological needs of these young people. >> explain what that is. >> one is a return to a glorious time in the muslim empire. this is a historical time for it

but for a lot of muslims there was a glorious time and there is a need to return to it in accordance to the failure of most modern nation states now. a lot of governments are failing youth so i.s.i.s. is appealing to youth by promising them, we're going to return you to a glorious time. second, 60% of the region's population are under the age of 30 with huge unemployment in the region and that does include iraq and does include syria. unless we undress this underpinning in the middle east of increased youth population, gap in the middle east then we are constantly doing this military intervention that does not have long term solutions. >> let me respond to what i heard you say. >> okay. >> which is maybe the united states -- there was a lot of talk about nation building after the u.s. invaded iraq unsuccessful right? >> well, i don't think there was ever a plan of nation building. as a matter of fact, the word nation building, as congress and

senate was a dirty word as opposed to we have to take a long term strategic vision of nation stabilization and that does include building employment and stabilizing people's life. in iraq as we talk there is still no electricity, six hours of electricity they still -- >> to help the iraqis with electricity right, they spent billions of dollars trying to do it. >> actually all records of the united states never had a strategic vision of how to rebuild iraq, it was always a military vision, never a development vision. >> so if the islamic state provides money and support, to that vacuum, other than military, if it comes in and it builds schools and builds infrastructure, then what -- are you saying that people will follow? is that -- >> yes, i think actually that's what happened. to give you an example, iraq was completely self-sustainable in

terms of food up until the invasion, up until the 2003 invasion. now all of us, you cannot find any local produce from iraq and the reason for that is, many reasons including there's no electricity, no pumping of water but also because the farmers were offered more money from terrorist organizations and militia groups than they were by the subsidies of the government which america lifted off the iraqi farmers. so yes at the end of the day people make short term immediate decisions of what is good for me and my livelihood today and we have to address that underpinning psychological needs for every individual. >> it is really an important thing we forget to look at whether we're talking about the military, thank you zena. still ahead, it's been 13 years since the 9/11 attacks. how the american mission in the area has changed. changed.

>> our special report, the rise of the islamic state. >> tomorrow marks 13 years since our country was attacked. next week marks six years since our economy suffered its worst setback since the great depression. yet despite these shocks, through the pain we felt and the grueling work required to bounce back, america is better positioned today to seize the future than any other nation on earth. >> live pictures from new york city and the world trade center. tomorrow many americans across the country will use the day to give back, as part of the 9/11 national day of service. and al jazeera will have special coverage, the 9/11 remembrance that begins tomorrow morning 11

eastern time. the attack triggered a swift response from washington, d.c. and then president george w. are bush, he launched america's so-called war on terror. tonight we look at al qaeda and the rise of the group. >> 13 years after 11 al qaeda is not what it once was. >> if you look at the two big indicators of what makes a global jihaddist groups strong, money largely from the gulf the islamic state is far outpacing al qaeda. >> reporter: there was a string of post-9/11 attacks, bali, jakarta, madrid, islamabad, others but never another strike inside the u.s. even so some analysts say al qaeda and its offspring remain a

potent threat, especially aqap,. >> put a person in an airplane over detroit with a bomb. and that bomb failed but nonetheless that is very long-reach. considerable capability. >> reporter: but even without pulling off another attack on the size of 9/11, borne deadly roots, the attacks at fort hood, the boston marathon and a failed attempt to bomb times square. and the alon loon loan wolf, whs america. >> cat loving florida kid before he carried out a suicide attack in syria.

now the u.s. is focused on the islamic state group also known as i.s.i.s. its leader, abu bakr al-baghdadi is a shad ohy figure who was actually imprisoned by u.s. forces in iraq back in 2005, he was later released and the u.s. is now offering a $10 million bounty for his death or capture. the group has drawn in fighters for 80 countries including europe and the u.s. the fear is that some will return home ready to do damage. >> i.s.i.s. could certainly operationalize, and tell them your mission is to train and return to the u.s. >> reporter: focused on consolidating its gains and shownly interest in attacking the u.s. or europe, but the tactics of violent groups are forever changes. paul beban, al jazeera.

>> let me bring back retired army major, truman national security projects mike lyons. 13 years ago, 9/11, the u.s. did not anticipate al qaeda and now has not anticipated the islamic state. how have we gotten here? >> we have not been reactive here, not had a d czar, we thout things were taken care of. whether we think bit we have been spending the last 13 years to prevent another 9/11. what is that event going to be, is there going to be another attack on the home land? if we are going to fight this enemy we'll fight it eight time zones from here. not on our shores. >> thank you mike lyons. that's our coverage. "consider this" has a special guest tonight, former u.s.

senator george mitchell with antonio mora. i'm john siegenthaler, i'll see you tonight. >> president obama makes his case to the american people to destroy the islamic state group. also a former islamic extremist, talks about living under a constant death threat. hello i'm antonio mora, welcome to "consider this," those and other stories straight ahead. >> america will lead a broad coalition tool